Philosophy 220
Consequentialism and Moral Concerns about Marriage
Consequentialism: The Basics
● Consequentialism is the name given to a family of more
specific normative ethical positions all of which share the
conviction that it is the consequences of actions which
determine their moral worth.
● As Timmons expresses it, all of these positions are
committed to the following claim.
● Right action is to be understood entirely in terms of the overall intrinsic
value of the consequences of the action compared with the overall
intrinsic value of the consequences associated with alternative actions an
agent might perform instead.
● Thus, an action is right iff its consequences would be at
least as good as the consequences of any alternative action
that the agent might instead perform.
Implications

There are a number of important implications of this
statement of these claims.
1. Consequentialist theories are value-based.
2. They are comparative theories. They make specific reference
to alternative actions and the rightness or wrongness of any
action is dependent on the value of the consequences of
those actions.
3. The consequentialist account of right action is a maximizing
conception.
4. Consequentialism is an impartialist moral theory. We have to
consider the consequences for everyone and everyone counts
equally.
It’s All in the Family
 The various specific forms of consequentialism
share a commitment to these basic claims.
 They differ in their theory of value.
 The TV of Utilitarianism identifies intrinsic value with
human welfare or happiness (it’s expression).
 The TV of Perfectionist Consequentialism identifies
intrinsic value with human perfection.
 The TV of Rule Consequentialism identifies intrinsic
value with the acceptance value* of rules.
*The value of the consequences of the rule were it generally accepted
Utilitarianism
 The basic idea of U is that the rightness or
wrongness of actions is determined by the their
effect on human welfare or happiness, with
maximization and impartiality assumed.
 Measure of this effect is called Utility: the net value
of the consequences of actions.
 Result is the Principle of Utility.
 An action is right iff its performance would likely
produce at least as high utility as would any other
alternative action.
What makes you fare well?
 An important issue that all utilitarians must address
is how to understand human welfare.
 Classical utilitarians (J. S. Mill, J. Bentham) identify
happiness (and thus human welfare) with pleasure
and pain.
 For this reason they are labeled Hedonsitic Utilitarians.
 As such, it is important to consider various senses
of pleasure and pain.
 Bodily Pleasure vs. Intellectual Pleasures
Perfectionist Consequentialism
 PC adopts a different TV than utilitarianism.
 Value Perfectionism: states of human perfection
(knowledge, excellence) that have intrinsic value.
 Thus, the TRC of PC says
 An action is right iff its performance would likely bring
about a greater net balance of perfectionist goods
than would any other alternative action.
 What is a perfectionist good?
Rule Consequentialism
 Both U and PC focus on actions.
 They are both forms of Act Consequentialism.
 There are a number of well recognized challenges
to act consequentialism.
 Ex: Problem of Justice (Framing an innocent.)
 As a result, some consequentialists have shifted
their focus to the capacity of rules to guide our
action.
 When we shift with them it becomes possible to
consider the consequences of the acceptance of
various possible rules.
Playing by the Rules
 On the assumption that some rules produce more
valuable consequences than others we can specify a
TV for RC.
 An action is right iff it is permitted by a rule whose associated
acceptance value is at least as high as the acceptance value of
any other rule applying to the situation.
 In the face of more than one possible action, RC directs
you to identify the rules governing the possible actions
and then compare the rules’ acceptance values to
determine which action is right.
Consequentialism in Action
 Applying consequentialism requires calculation and
comparison.
 Calculation can refer to an overt calculus or a more

informal estimation. The explicit goal of the calculation is
to identify the action/rule that maximizes the specified
value(s).
Comparison must include all parties affected (in a
relevant or significant way) by the proposed action.
 Evaluating consequentialist claims requires us to
consider the truth and/or adequacy of the claims
made, as well as the accuracy and appropriateness of
the calculation and comparison.
Marriage: What is it good for?
 Independent of the social, emotional and psychological effects of marriage,
there are over a thousand state and federal rights enjoyed only by married
people.
 They include:

joint parenting; joint adoption; status as next-of-kin for hospital visits and medical
decisions where one partner is too ill to be competent; dissolution and divorce
protections such as community property and child support; immigration and
residency for partners from other countries; inheritance automatically in the absence
of a will; benefits such as annuities, pension plans, Social Security, and Medicare;
joint filing of tax returns (with associated withholding benefits); wrongful death
benefits for a surviving partner and children; bereavement or sick leave to care for a
partner or child; decision-making power with respect to disposition of a deceased
partner’s remains; judicial protections and evidentiary immunity.
 For the most part, the exercise of these rights cannot be privately arranged or
established by contract.
Gallagher, “Normal Marriage: Two
Views”
 Gallagher is a conservative on the question of the moral
status of marriage. That is, she believes that only some
forms of legally approved unions should count as marriage.
 To justify this position, she begins by distinguishing two
theories about what normal (that is, public, legally
authorized) marriage is:
 The Relationship View: Marriage is an essentially private
relationship whose fundamental aim is to enhance the personal
well-being of the married partners.
 The Public View: Marriage is a public bond and sexual
institution between members of the opposite sex; it is
fundamentally about reproduction and the continuation of
society.
The Argument Strategy
 Though she recognizes that these two views are not mutually
exclusive, she does want to argue that they lead to two very
different views on the morally permissible forms of marriage.
 Only one of the views is consistent with her conservative position
on the issue.
 Though we might not be able to argue for or against one of these
views directly, we can consider the consequences of the views, if
broadly adopted.
 This would provide us with the resources for a rule
consequentialist type of analysis.
 The basic idea then is that if one view, if adopted, would produce
significant undesirable consequences, then we should resist its
adoption.
 Likewise, if another view, if adopted, would produce desirable
consequences, then we should adopt it.
One ‘Rule:’ The Relationship View
 Gallagher first considers the nature and possible implications of the
adoption of the relationship view.
 Understood in these terms, there would be no non-question begging
or prejudicial basis for denying individuals access to marriage based
merely on the biological sex of the partners (or even the number of
the partners).
 This is not to deny that there are legitimate state interests that could
serve as the basis of restricting access to marriage nor that there are
important social goods that the legal status of marriage seeks to
foster, enhance or protect.
 On the one hand, health concerns, or concerns about age appropriateness
seem legitimate bases for restrictions.
 On the other, social stability and the interests of children are important
goods that might justify the legal protections embodied in marriage.
Possible Consequences

Gallagher is concerned, however, that the more permissive approach to marriage
consistent with the relationship view (one which includes the possibility of same-sex
marriage) would lead to a range of undesirable consequences.

Though less a consequence than an observation, Gallagher claims that the relationship
view makes it more difficult to understand why the states have traditionally regulated
marriage.

An important possible consequence that Gallagher claims is the erosion of the idea that
there is a special connection between a child and his/her biological parents, a
connection that explains the parents' obligations to their child.
 The implications being that the relationship view, to the extent that it makes parenting a
choice, not a biologically determined imperative, would weaken the moral obligations felt by
parents.

Another important possible consequence is the claim that, “…children not raised by their
own married mother and father are at increased risk for just about every negative
outcome social scientists know how to measure…” (110c2).
 Note the assumption made by the following: “There is no evidence from the social
sciences…that credibly disrupts the assumption that a child does better raised by his or her
own married mother and father” (Ibid.).
Real Consequences?

When we are evaluating consequentialist arguments like Gallagher’s we have to
consider whether the claimed consequences really do follow, if they add up in a way that
justifies the moral verdict, and if all the relevant interests are considered.

With regard to the first concern, we should note Gallagher’s own admissions about the
weaknesses of the social scientific evidence for her position.
 “Due to problems in sample selection and size, study design and other technical flaws, the
current body of social scientific literature…cannot tell us whether or not there are any
important differences between children raised by their own two married mothers and
fathers, and children raised by two same-sex parents” (109c1).

As a result, with regard to the second concern, it’s not clear that the problems add up in
a way that justifies her rejection of the relationship view (and thus of same-sex
marriage).
 Most of her concerns seem to be addressed most appropriately to the challenges facing
single parents. But there is no reason to believe that the relationship view results in more
single parents.

Finally, there seem to be a number of possible social interests not addressed by her
concerns, but well handled by the relationship view.
 For example, the interest in social stability as promoted by marriage.
Another Rule
 In addition to raising questions about the moral value of the
consequences of the relationship view, Gallagher also considers the
moral value of the consequences of the public view (and the more
conservative account of marriage that it supports).
 Gallagher focuses on the following positive consequences claimed for
the public view:
 Adopting this view is necessary for the survival of society. The institution of
marriage is already tottering on the brink; a more permissive view
threatens to push it over into oblivion, resulting in dramatic negative
consequences for our social fabric.
 Adopting this view would have good consequences for children, who need
to be raised by married opposite-sex couples to thrive.
 Even if the law reflects this view (and it should) by not allowing same-sex
marriage, same-sex couples could still enjoy many of the legal benefits
that married couples do.
Again, Real Consequences?
 In this context, too, we should evaluate the consequentialist claims
made by Gallagher.
 We should wonder about the relationship between the public view
and the survival of society.
 Even if it’s a reflection of historical reality (a big ‘if’), is it
necessarily the case that human society requires an idea of
marriage dominated by reproduction and publically defined
gender/parenting roles? Are the problems with the institution of
marriage really solved by adopting the public view?
 Acknowledging that there are benefits that flow to children raised
in traditional family structures, are those benefits so substantial
that they outweigh the costs associated with the restrictive limits
imposed on marriage by the public view?
 Are the benefits denied to people by the restrictions of the public
view really as trivial as Gallagher suggests?
Wolfson, “Enough Marriage to
Share”
 Wolfson replies directly to Gallagher. It is a good example of the kind of critical
work that needs to be done to evaluate consequentialist arguments like the
one offered by Gallagher.
 Like we did, though in much greater detail and marshaling significant legal
and social scientific research in support of his criticisms, Wolfson responds to
the sorts of questions and concerns readily raised in response to Gallagher’s
argument.
 Notable amongst the findings to which he directs our attention:




There is no reason to believe that same-sex couples are generally not as capable of
successfully raising children as opposite-sex couples (116c1).
Denying same-sex marriage has no benefits but many costs (especially to same-sex
couples and children of these couples) (116c2-117c1).
Marriage is not necessarily about procreation (117c1).
There is little or no reason to think that legalizing same-sex marriage would have
serious negative consequences (117c2-118c1).
In Conclusion
 As Wolfson notes at the end of his essay, despite
Gallagher’s claims to the contrary, this laws and courts
of the United States have generally affirmed the
relationship view of marriage.
 Cf., quotation from Griswold v. Connecticut (118c1).
 Noting that many other developed countries have
allowed same sex marriage without any appreciable
negative consequences, Wolfson concludes that the U.
S. should allow it too.